Mortgage costs & fees guide

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Who is this page for?

If you’re a first time buyer or a homeowner who’s thinking about moving, find out all you need to know about mortgage costs here.  

In this article

Breakdown of costs & fees

Mortgage costs

Legal costs

You’ll need to hire a solicitor or conveyancer to manage the legal work required to buy your first home. These legal costs are usually split into two categories:

  • Stamp duty - if you are buying a residential property in England and Northern Ireland, you will not have to pay Stamp Duty on the first £250,000 of a property’s purchase price. These amounts differ if you are a first time buyer.
  • Solicitor fees – Solicitors will handle all the legal processes you’ll need to buy your first home. Hiring a solicitor can cost between £850 to £1,500.
  • Land registry – Your solicitor will register your home with the Land Registry. This costs between £45 to £1,105.

Other costs

There are other costs you should account for when budgeting for your first home, including: 

  • Home insurance – Lenders will require you to take out buildings insurance. The cost for buildings insurance varies depending on the provider and level of coverage you pick.
  • Survey fees – It’s worth setting up your own property survey to see if there are any problems with the property. The price for a survey varies depending on how detailed it is.
  • Moving house – You’ll also need to pay to move or store furniture. Moving costs depend on how much stuff you have and how far you’re moving. See our guide on the costs of moving house for a full breakdown.

Costs when leaving a mortgage deal

It might seem a long way off, but one day you’ll reach the end of your mortgage payments. Or you’ll be in a position to pay off the remainder of your mortgage early.

When your mortgage term ends and it’s been repaid in full, you may pay an exit fee to close your account. This is typically a couple of hundred pounds and is sometimes included in your initial arrangement fee. 

If you port your mortgage – which is where you take out another mortgage on a new home and use the same lender – you may have to pay an admin fee. However, Halifax do not charge an admin fee.

Additionally, if you choose to repay your mortgage earlier, you may have to pay an early repayment charge. This is usually calculated as a percentage of the mortgage loan, often between 1 and 5%.

To fully understand the costs, check out our guide on paying off a mortgage early.

The content on this page is for reference and does not constitute finance advice.

For impartial financial advice, we recommend government bodies like the MoneyHelper.

Related pages

Find out more about mortgages.

Should you remortgage? >

Cost of moving home >

Porting your mortgage >

Calculators & tools

We have a range of mortgage calculators to help you:

  • Find out how much you could borrow from Lloyds Bank
  • See how much you could save if you make overpayments on your mortgage
  • Get an idea how a change to the Bank of England Base Rate could effect your monthly payments

Use our mortgage calculator and tools >

Need to speak with someone?

You can talk to us over the phone or use our mortgage video service from the comfort of your own home.

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Important legal information

Lloyds Bank plc. Registered office: 25 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7HN. Registered in England and Wales No. 2065. Lloyds Bank plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration number 119278.

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